Does anyone have any experience with the Skybean helmet vario? http://www.skybean.eu/
My old Digifly Leonardo's sound output has become too faint. Compered with other Leonardo's on the same settings, mine has only half the volume. (I replaced the 2-cm piezo disc speaker, but to no avail.). There must be a problem in the circuitry.
I am thinking about getting a Skybean (not the Skydrop) to provide me with an audio signal that I can clearly hear. (I will continue to use my Leonardo as well.) Does anyone have any suggestions or useful comments?

Last edited by Odakyu-sen on Thu May 18, 2017 5:49 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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I have been using a Skybean as my only vario for the past year. I have been very happy with it. I normally fly with it turned off, but it is easy to turn on in flight and is nice to have it available when desired. It is very easy to use and unobtrusive mounted on my helmet. The volume and sensitivity are adjustable.

Odakyu-sen wrote:My old Digifly Leonardo's sound output has become too faint. Compered with other Leonardo's on the same settings, mine has only half the volume. (I replaced the 2-cm piezo disc speaker, but to no avail.). There must be a problem in the circuitry. Does anyone have any suggestions or useful comments?

Odakyu-sen,

I see a manual, PC software, and a firmware update on their web page. Nothing there will help?

Piezo speakers come in many sizes and varieties. Maybe a better version of that piece of hardware is needed there. Alternately, a small plastic cone (mini-megaphone) around the speaker may be able to direct more sound to you (in a useful direction, that is) rather than a "broadcast" style of sound that wastes sound power in unwanted directions. Good hunting, there . . .

Piezo speakers come in many sizes and varieties. Maybe a better version of that piece of hardware is needed there. Alternately, a small plastic cone (mini-megaphone) around the speaker may be able to direct more sound to you (in a useful direction, that is) rather than a "broadcast" style of sound that wastes sound power in unwanted directions. Good hunting, there . . .

I contacted Digifly directly, but they advised that I buy a 20-mm piezo disc speaker locally, as it wasn't worth the expense of postage from Italy to New Zealand. I bought a couple of 20-mm piezo speakers locally. They have to be 20-mm to fit into the speaker mounting in the instrument case (which functions as a sounding board to amplify the speaker output).

I really like my Digifly Leonardo, but its beep is too faint. (It wasn't always like that.) In a couple of years I'll get a more modern vario that can show airspace boundaries. This is a stopgap measure.

A couple of years ago I updated the Firmware to Ver. 66.1 (2011) which is the latest.

red wrote:Piezo speakers come in many sizes and varieties. Maybe a better version of that piece of hardware is needed there.

I contacted Digifly directly, but they advised that I buy a 20-mm piezo disc speaker locally, I bought a couple of 20-mm piezo speakers locally. They have to be 20-mm to fit into the speaker mounting in the instrument case (which functions as a sounding board to amplify the speaker output).

Odakyu-sen,

Ummm . . . Not quite what I had in mind. Find a larger (louder) piezo speaker, and mount it externally, over the hole where the speaker should be. Ring it with clear epoxy to secure it in place, and to "fair" it slickly into the case. Piezo speakers usually won't be helped much by sounding boards.

One grain of sand in a piezo speaker can reduce or eliminate the sound from that speaker. Try tapping the case near the speaker as it is sounding off steadily, and you hold the unit at all possible angles. If sand is the problem, once you tilt and tap at the right angles, the sound level should become normal again. If that happens, glue a piece of fine silk over the speaker opening to keep sand out in the future.

Ummm . . . Not quite what I had in mind. Find a larger (louder) piezo speaker, and mount it externally, over the hole where the speaker should be. Ring it with clear epoxy to secure it in place, and to "fair" it slickly into the case.

I might try that. The trick will be to find a louder speaker. $5 for a speaker would be a lot cheaper than $120 for a helmet vario.

red wrote:Ummm . . . Not quite what I had in mind. Find a larger (louder) piezo speaker, and mount it externally, over the hole where the speaker should be. Ring it with clear epoxy to secure it in place, and to "fair" it slickly into the case.

I might try that. The trick will be to find a louder speaker. $5 for a speaker would be a lot cheaper than $120 for a helmet vario.

Odakyu-sen,

Probably fair to add, don't try to blow the sand out of a piezo speaker with your breath, or compressed air. You might just make things worse that way. Tilting and tapping (while the speaker is sounding) should do the job.

Odakyu-sen wrote:I solved the problem. I bought a bigger (3 cm-diameter) piezo speaker and mounted it on the top of my vario. The sound is significantly louder and will solve my problem.

Odakyu-sen,

You can reduce the sound level of a larger piezo speaker with a piece of electrical tape, sealed over the hole. Pierce the tape with a red-hot needle once or twice, to let out the desired level of sound.

Odakyu-sen wrote:I solved the problem. I bought a bigger (3 cm-diameter) piezo speaker and mounted it on the top of my vario. The sound is significantly louder and will solve my problem.

Odakyu-sen,

You can reduce the sound level of a larger piezo speaker with a piece of electrical tape, sealed over the hole. Pierce the tape with a red-hot needle once or twice, to let out the desired level of sound.

Naaaah. I'll use sand to solve the problem naturally. Here in NZ on the West Coast the sand is black (iron sand). If you stick a magnet in the sand, it will pick the same up like iron filings. You can imagine what this stuff does to piezoelectric speakers.

Odakyu-sen wrote:I solved the problem. I bought a bigger (3 cm-diameter) piezo speaker and mounted it on the top of my vario. The sound is significantly louder and will solve my problem.

You can reduce the sound level of a larger piezo speaker with a piece of electrical tape, sealed over the hole. Pierce the tape with a red-hot needle once or twice, to let out the desired level of sound.

Naaaah. I'll use sand to solve the problem naturally. Here in NZ on the West Coast the sand is black (iron sand). If you stick a magnet in the sand, it will pick the same up like iron filings. You can imagine what this stuff does to piezoelectric speakers.

Odakyu-sen,

Any grain of sand can reduce the sound coming from a piezoelectric speaker, but there are no magnets in a piezoelectric speaker. Often you can tilt and tap the piezo speaker to shake loose any sand, and get the volume back. The piezo crystal is usually quartz. If you bend the crystal physically, it makes a voltage. If you hit the crystal with a voltage, it will bend. The bending crystal (attached to the thin metal plate) is what makes the sound. The tape will help to keep out any type of sand.